A weekend eating in London (part 2)

The OXO Tower

Saturday morning we awoke to a overcast but dry day. Our afternoon lunch destination was the OXO Tower Brasserie. The big brownie point here was the OXO Tower has a riverside roof terrace! So a dry day was great news for us.

Even though we had not woken very hungry after our meal last night at Rhodes 24 we decided we would eat breakfast as lunch was not until two o'clock today which we purposely booked as our evening meal at Le Gavroche could not be taken till a whopping 10.30pm so careful planning of the day had to be made.

After having a nice day at Borough Market a bit of shopping and drinks at the Ice Bar

(more of which I will document later in the blog, as for now it's all about the food)
We made our way to the OXO Tower, a building with an interesting history.

Built at the end of the 19th century it was originally a power station for the post office then later bought by the Liebig Extract of Meat Company, manufacturers of OXO beef stock cubes. They demolished most of the original power station leaving only the original front facade and was then used as a cold store, warehouse and distribution centre for their meat imports. The architect Albert More cleverley incorporated the OXO design in its windows of the tower as during the second world war there was a night time ban on skyline advertising and this was a ingenious way to get around this.

After the 1970's it had lain derelict until it had been purchased by the 'Coin street community builders'  and was given a new lease of life by the 90's. It has now been transformed into a multifunctional riverside landmark. The building is home to residential accommodation, shops, retail design studios, Galleries, cafes, bars & an exhibition space.

More importantly for us on this day a restaurant that is part of the Harvey Nichols empire!

Viewing the OXO Tower from Blackfriars bridge is quite impressive it's in a stunning location right on the river front. The rusty red coloured brick and white lintel building stood out amongst the Grey concrete and glass of its surrounding buildings and the roof terrace can clearly be seen under it's glass canopy and flourishes of greenery.  
 

OXO Tower from Blackfriars bridge

One look at that OXO logo immediately conjures up the image of a little black beefy salty cube that went into the gravy making of every British housewife.

Gravy to us Brits is the elixir of life it runs through our veins, So it seemed right and fitting we are going to eat here!

Getting into the OXO Tower was strange affair, as it's part residential you feel like your walking the halls and landings of a tower block, but once you reach the restaurant and bar area all that is forgotten as your jaw drops at the stunning view ahead of you.

There was slight  disappointment when we were seated at the back of the restaurant. Undeterred I requested another seat at the window. We were lead back to reception where we were told we could have a window seat when one became available this could be up to 45 mins. Not a problem we were more than happy to wait and even more delighted to wait on the terrace with a nice cocktail to take in the view.

It has to be said there is a very impressive selection of cocktails on the menu.

Rach and I both chose a Rhuby spritz, a Rhubarb based cocktail and it was beautiful.
As was the skyline of London ! again another incredible view from a roof terrace bar .
Now what's not to like about doing some sight seeing without leaving your seat with a cocktail in your hand ?

From here you can see St Paul's cathedral, Somerset house, and the most amazing stretch of the Thames and it's bridges.

In fact spending time out on the terrace seemed to go too quickly for our table was now ready.

P.S you can have a table for dining on the terrace but a pesky breeze had threatened to make the wine glasses dance on the tablecloths so it wasn't to be today.

Inside is very spacious due to the high ceilings and bright and airy helped by the Floor to ceiling glass windows that run the entire length of the restaurant. Minimalistic modern feel which is great when you fancy an informal setting. Atmosphere was buzzing. 

We particularly loved the live female vocalist and piano accompaniment that was playing whilst we ate.
 

 So on to the food porn ! this is what we ate.



Grilled Cornish squid, Flatbread, cherry tomato salad, lime mayonnaise, chilli corn salsa

Beetroot mozzarella pine nuts fine herb salad, roasted pumpkin.

Lamb two ways, roasted rump, shoulder stifado, fregola, feta hazelnut yogurt, lavosh.

 

Roasted Cornish cod, salt cod mash, marinated peppers,green olive tapenade.

Bitter chocolate tart, liquorice ice cream, honeycomb, raspberries.

Lemon vodka parfait, strawberries, poppy seed meringues.

As you can see from the pictures the food was vibrant and fresh and I can tell you very very tasty. Not bad for a Saturday lunch!

It was during the pause from mains to desert sitting there with a glorious view, slightly squiffy from the cocktail, a satisfied belly, and an extremely happy feeling to be here that I think I must have flat lined and gone to foodie heaven......................

Somewhere in the background i was aware of singing it was Frank Sinatra's "All of Me "  The arrival of desert was my defibrillation and BOOM, I was back in the room !



We left the OXO Tower very full and slightly worried for tonight. As tonight we dine at 
Le Gavroche a two Michelin star restaurant . Ooo get us! 
The Chef Cuisine is Michel Roux Jr. A man who's name makes young chefs quake in their freshly laundered whites.

A weekend eating in London (part 1)

After searching the virtual estate agents Blogger seemed a likely candidate for a new home, a place to reside with my passion for food.

Not wanting to flood my timeline on Facebook fit to bursting with foodie pictures, musings on restaurants visited and my adventurous expeditions from Tesco to Thailand, You can now find it all here in my new home. I've picked up the keys and I'm moving in!.

I'm looking forward to meeting my new foodie neighbours and likewise please feel free to knock on my door. Some of my old neighbours from Facebook lane and Twitter Avenue will be invited to visit my new home. Please sit down and make yourselves comfortable I'll put the kettle on? Or would you like something stronger?


Oh and while your here I may as well tell you about the weekend I had this summer in London that reignited a desire to write it all down for my own recall and now to share with the blogosphere. If you like your visit, click on the RSS feed or subscribe using the Email link.

My new address is

http://eatslurpburp.blogspot.co.uk/

No stamp needed or envelopes to lick just click my new address to visit me anytime.

P.S there is a Tesco in Thailand I've seen one !

A weekend eating in London (Part 1)

Gary Rhodes at Rhodes 24

Let me begin by taking you back with me to a weekend in July. It was my partners 30th birthday. Hotel and transport fee's aside I had managed to save a fist full of Dollars to wine and dine her hearts desire. For you see she loves food just as much as me! 

Some of our friends would think it a crime spending this kind of money in restaurants. 
That sharp intake of breath never fails to amuse me, But why not? It's no different to paying hundreds of pounds for a ticket to see Madonna or Mick Jagger! You're paying for an experience or to have great time it's no different. 
None of that matters to us one jot when you've saved for a purpose and on this occasion the intention was to spend the lot in one weekend on food and drink! To just go for it and create a real memory maker.

That's exactly what we did! Without limitation and three days to spend it. I can't tell you how good it felt booking our chosen restaurants.
 

First up was Heston Blumenthal's Fat Duck .......Not a fat chance ! How does one get a table at this restaurant??? Disappointment aside on we moved to Gary Rhodes at Rhodes 24 BINGO!! Table for two 8.30pm. Then on we went snapping up tables till our weekend looked like this.

After dumping our bags at the hotel we made our way to our first port of call The SkyLounge where we met up briefly with a friend to have a couple of cocktails. I have to point out we are great fans of roof terrace bars and always try to seek them out when ever we visit a city, mostly because they are a great vantage point to view your surroundings. The SkyLounge is arguably one of the best in London offering spectacular views of Tower Bridge, The Tower of London, The Shard, The Gherkin, St Paul's and the river Thames.



Sky Lounge , Doubletree, Hilton



Cocktails at the Sky Lounge

View of the Gherkin from the Sky Lounge

View of the Shard drom the Sky Lounge

This was our very first visit to a Michelin starred restaurant and I'm not ashamed to admit the excitement was incredible we felt like teenagers with a butterflies in our stomachs about to meet a movie star and of course the expectation of a fantastic meal.
After the official meet and greet we were given the wine menu to peruse whilst we waited for our table. Rhodes 24 is located in Tower 42 the city of London's tallest building so views over London come as standard. Luckily for us we were seated at a table next to floor to ceiling windows which undoubtedly offered the best views of the city and directly overlooked one of London's most recognised landmarks the Gherkin.

I was also canny enough to book at such a time it would be light enough to absorb the view and watch the skyline change as it slowly transcended into darkness with all the twinkly lights the city had to offer.

All this made a fantastic backdrop to our evening.  



Rhodes 24 at Tower 42

Entrance to Rhodes 24

The Birthday Girl

Fantastic meal with a fantastic view

Amuse Bouche - Chilled Gazpacho soup with cucumber oil

Crispy duck egg, wild mushrooms, Barkham blue cheese toast





Glazed lobster omelette thermidor

This was a dish Rach said she will never forget! So much so she told the Waiter it had imprinted on her.



Free range pork loin with poached apple, slow roasted pork belly and lobster ravioli



This belly pork was amazing it melted in the mouth and the taste was like no pork I had ever eaten in fact I amused our waiter by announcing "I don't know what I've been eating all these years"? The crackling which I can only imagine had been blitzed in a blender was a real revelation. So different, something I said I must try at home. 

Poached rhubarb, toasted marshmallow meringue, rhubarb sorbet and warm vanilla custard

                        Iced peanut parfait, lime jelly, dark chocolate mousse

I loved everything about the sound of this desert when I ordered it but the lime jelly was so strong it tasted like the smell of dissinfectant. I love lime but for me it did not really belong on the plate. The parfait and chocolate mousse however where devine.

                                                           Petit fours
The whole evening from start to finish was fantastic, everything about Rhodes 24 delivered on every level. Fantastic food, flawless service, great atmosphere and views to die for. Neither did it put a noticeable dent in the budget !